A new Family Member
by Indianwolfhelper
Summary: When Dino meets a girl in the streets one night, he never suspected her past, or that she would come to mean so much to him.


**A/N: hey everyone! Sorry I haven't been updating my other stories, I'm a troll like that. New chapters are coming I promise. In the meantime, enjoy the AU DinoxOc story my friend (Sonja) and I wrote together. We started it about 2 months ago, and it's really long. But anyways enough of my senless rambling, Read it with your Dying Will!**

List of characters

Chiara Lupo (20 years old, black hair, stormy grey eyes, red storm flames, wolf tattoo on left shoulder, fights with an AK-47. )

Dino

Romario

Enzo (not the turtle)

A bunch of random people (like Basil)

Varia (works for Vongola)

Carcassa family (led by Skull, an Arcobaleno with the purple pacifier)

Estraneo Family

The full moon hung low in the sky, as I hurried through the streets of Rome. Suddenly, I bumped into someone. "I'm sorry." I said. I looked up to find myself staring down a gun barrel. "Look what we have here. Fresh meat, eh boys?" A voice said. "Please sir, I didn't do anything, just let me go home." I said. "I don't think I will. You insulted our Boss and now you must pay." My fists clenched. Mafiosi. Reaching in my jacket, I groped for my gun. When I found it, I pulled it out and pointed it at the man. He laughed. "What are you going to do with that toy of yours?" Smiling, I pulled the trigger. "That." I stated calmly as he fell to the ground bleeding. I then blew the smoke away, and brushed calmly past the men. Hearing footsteps behind me, I turned. Two of the men grabbed me, and pinned me to the ground. A third sat on my chest, and began choking me. I screamed and kicked, trying to free myself, but to no avail. Then suddenly a new voice rang out in the night. "Let her go. Now." The man climbed off me and turned to face my rescuer. "Who's gonna make me? You?" He laughed and spit. "You really shouldn't have done that." my rescuer said, uncoiling a whip. A battle ensued. When it was over, my rescuer walked over to me and offered me his hand. Grabbing it, he pulled me to my feet. "You ok?" he asked. I nodded shakily. He looked me over. "I'll walk you home. Where do you live?" Shifting uncomfortably, I avoided the question. He looked at me again. "Where do you live?" Sighing I told him, "I have no home. Just let me go, I'm fine." I said, turning to go. He grabbed my arm. "Wait. You're hurt. I'll take you home with me. Is that okay?" Surprised, I turned to look at the man who had just saved my life. At first I thought he wasn't being serious, but when I saw the concern in his eyes I realized that he was being completely honest. I grabbed the hand that he had put on my arm with my own."Y-you would take me with you? To where?" I said, though my voice sounded unusually weak and high pitched. The smile he showed me as he relaxed his grip on my arm filled me with warmth. "To my place. But only temporarily, if that's alright with you." I wasn't sure what to say. He looked so strong and confident with his whole silhouette framed by the moonlight. Trembling, I just nodded and watched as he ordered his men to 'take care of the rest'. What they would be taking care of, I didn't really know. The only thing I did know was that there was a beautiful stranger who had saved my life and offered me shelter. "Ow, that kind of hurts..." he said, breaking my chain of thoughts. With a start I realized that I was still gripping his hand. Gasping, I dropped it and took a few steps back. For some reason, that made him smile. I felt the blood rushing to my face, meaning that I was probably blushing. "Now, come with me, my villa is not that far away", he said and motioned for me to follow him. It seemed like I had no control over my movements, my legs moved automatically. We walked through the streets in the dark, cold night. Shivering I looked at my feet. He turned to me and, seeing that I was cold took off his jacket and wrapped it around my shoulders. "Thanks," I said, blushing a bit. Smiling, he looked at me. "No problem. What kind of man would I be if I let a lady freeze?"

Surprised, I looked up at him, my eyes widening. "I…"

"Yes?" Shyly, I looked down at the street. Then, I plucked up my courage and kissed his cheek. "Thank you." Aghast, he stopped in his tracks, and then stammered something like no problem. Looking down, I blushed. "Now I've embarrassed you. I'm sorry. It was just an impulse reaction." His face turned bright red. "Uh…well, it's no problem; you just kind of caught me off guard." His men tried hard not to laugh at him. Looking away I said, "If you want to leave me here, I'll be alright." Shocked, he waved around his hands and exclaimed: "Ah… no, really, it's alright." I kept walking, though I had no clue where I was going. I felt his arms on my shoulders. Feeling the sudden touch, I jumped. "That's the wrong way." He said. "O-oh…" He pointed to the left. "We're here."

The Cavallone villa was stunning both outside and inside. The ceilings were high with many chandeliers hanging down from them. Two huge staircases led to more rooms upstairs. Maids were everywhere, cleaning. They were making my bed while I got ready for a shower. Once I was showered off, I changed into the spare set of clothing they'd lent me. Toweling off my hair, I stepped out of the bathroom to find Dino standing in the doorframe. _Thank god I'm dressed._ I thought, staring at him.

"I was just checking in to see if you were hungry." How long had it been since I had eaten? After all, I'd been on the run for a while, so I'd barely had time to eat or sleep. "I'm good. Just tired." It was a lie of course, but I didn't want to appear too needy. Suddenly, everything turned black, and the next thing I knew I was falling. And as I collapsed, I felt strong arms wrap around my shoulders and catch me. The last thing I heard was his concerned voice asking if I'm okay.

I woke to find myself in an unfamiliar place. The first thing I saw was his face. He had been talking to one of his men, when he noticed that I had opened my eyes. Much to my surprise, he placed his hand on my forehead. "Are you feeling better?" I turned my head and nodded. When I tried to sit up, I suddenly felt dizzy, causing me to clasp my forehead. He gently pushed me down. "Don't try to sit up yet, you're still too weak." Of course he was right, but I wasn't very fond of showing people my weak side, and that was basically the very first thing I showed him. "By the way, I'm Dino. What's your name?" "I'm Chiara Lupo." I stated, "It's nice to know who my allies are, Dino." He cocked his head and gave me a confused look. "What do you mean?" I just laughed and said it was nothing. "Anyways, I'll have one of the maids bring up your breakfast." And with that he turned and left the room, his men following him. Once outside, an intense discussion started of which I could only hear bits and pieces. One of the men called Romario was asking him if I'm from some allied family. "I've never seen nor heard of her until yesterday, boss", I heard a voice say. "That doesn't mean she's an enemy, Enzo." That was Dino. I instantly recognized the sound of his voice. The discussion stopped abruptly as the maid entered the room with my breakfast. Dino followed her in, and just silently watched me as I ate. "Say- Chiara, right? Where are you from?" I put down my fork and looked at him. "I've been all over Italy, since my home was destroyed." Upon hearing this, he looked what you might call shocked. "Y-your home was destroyed, what happened?"

I made sure that my facial expression gave nothing away. "I don't know, but whatever it was, it left nothing alive." I shrugged. "Not that I'm upset, I couldn't wait to get out of that hellhole." Again, he gave me that shocked look of his. "What?" I asked him indifferently. "Uuh… nothing", he said, but I was sure I heard him mutter something like 'What the hell?'

At that point I was finished with my breakfast, which the maid carried away immediately. Again, I tried to get up, but again, dizziness overwhelmed me. Then I just shook my head and pushed myself to stand. "You need help?" he asked, concerned. Shaking my head, I said: "No, I can get up without your help."

"Alright", he said, holding up his hands in defense. Trying to take a step, I stumbled, but refusing to admit defeat, kept going.

Dino looked at me, very concerned now. "Look, you're still too weak. Please, if you want to walk, let me help." I looked him over. "You're that worried about me? Fine." Admitting defeat was never easy, but at least this guy was hotter than the last one who'd tried to help me. Shamal or something; some old perv. Dino put his arm around my shoulders and guided me out into the hall. We walked down the stairs and into the living room. Setting me on the couch, he left to get me some water. Looking around I noticed this room was different than the others. Weapons were lying everywhere, including a whip that looked _very _well used. "Weird. Don't tell me he fights with _this?" _I said, reaching for it. Just as my hand touched the handle, Dino reappeared, carrying the water. "Don't touch that!" I looked at him and scoffed. "Please, like I haven't seen one before!" He handed me the water and now that concerned look was back on his adorable face. I shrugged and accepted the water, taking a sip. "It's not like I care or anything. Like I said; I hated my family and they hated me. No big deal." He sat down slowly as if trying not to startle me, keeping his eyes on me. His expression didn't change. "They hated you enough to beat you?" I looked at him. "Maybe." Taking a sip of water I observed him over the top of the glass.

Sighing, he leaned closer to me. "May I ask... were you born into a mafia family?" It didn't surprise me that he asked that question. Putting down my glass, I answered: "What if I was?" I couldn't quite comprehend it, but it seemed like there was understanding in his eyes. "What is your family called?" he asked. I shifted uncomfortably in my seat. Actually, I had no desire whatsoever to talk about my family, but this stranger seemed so worried about me that it wouldn't possibly harm me to let him know the truth. When I spoke again, I said only one word: "Estraneo."

His eyes widened and his body flinched as though I had struck him. I looked away, somehow feeling like I couldn't face him. "Oh… I see", I heard him say. For what seemed like a long time, neither of us spoke. Then, all of a sudden, three of his subordinates, including the man called Romario, entered the room. According to them, there was some kind of meeting that Dino had to attend to, and he was going to be late if they didn't leave now. "I have to go now, but I'll be back later. Ciao", he told me as he put on his coat and left. I didn't respond. Instead, I dragged myself back upstairs to my room and collapsed onto the bed.

The streets were covered with corpses in blood. The smell of death was so strong it was unbearable. In front of me, several people lay unmoving, staring into space with their glassy, dead eyes. A rival family had come to assassinate yet more members of our family. One of them was my mother. She had been a strict woman with her black hair tied back in a bun and glasses that could only belong to a teacher. She would always force me to stay in that one room full of children, never really caring what would happen to me. Several times, she would make me help her with experiments on some of the other children. Luckily, by helping the adults with the experiment, I didn't have to be their guinea pig. Even the smallest mistake, though, would result in them torturing me, often times by whipping me. Over the years, I had tried to stay strong and be useful to them so I wouldn't have to go through the same things as the other children.

I shivered. There were no shoes on my feet and I was dressed in thin, white linen clothes, but that wasn't exactly why I shivered. I didn't want to admit it to myself, but the truth is that I was scared. What was going to happen to me from now on? My thoughts were running wild as my feet turned red from the blood that flowed towards the sewers.

Suddenly, the scene shifted. Now I was back in the laboratory. A man with a scar that stretched from his forehead down to his neck was standing in front of me. I tried to move, but it was futile. Both my hands and feet were chained. Two other scarred men held my arms so that I couldn't escape. "We all make sacrifices to save our family", the man in front of me said simply. "Take her away!"

I knew exactly where they would take me, I'd been there before. Desperately, I tried to struggle against the two men that were dragging me, but it was all in vain. As we got closer to the room at the end of the hallway, I started to scream for help. They would take me to the room where they tested bullets on the children, but all of them had died so far. I wasn't ready to die… not here, not now. There are still so many things I want to do, yet the door to the room grew bigger as we drew nearer. I could feel my life slipping away. No… no! Someone… anyone… please! Help me! I don't want to die…

"Chiara? Hey! Wake up!" I quickly sat up, tears running down my face. It had all been a nightmare, and nothing more, though it had seemed way too realistic. I gripped Dino's shoulders as tightly as I could. "D-Dino?" I asked shakily. He gently pulled me into his arms. "Sssh. I'm right here." My body was quaking from the sobs, but he didn't let go. I leaned into his broad chest. Slowly, I started to calm down. Too late, I noticed what I had just done. I had actually shown a pathetic side of me to a stranger; a man of all people. Placing my hand on his chest, I pushed him away. My face felt oddly hot, which probably meant that I was blushing, so I turned my back towards him. "Have you calmed down?" he asked, his voice sounding soft.

Not sure what to say, I stayed silent. I heard him sigh. "What did you see that scared you so much?" he asked carefully, as if he was trying not to startle me. Again, I said nothing. All of a sudden, Romario came in. "Boss! Varia wants to meet to you immediately! They say it's important." I felt Dino get up from the bed, and suddenly his hand was on my shoulder. "Will you be okay by yourself?" I glared at him. "I may be a woman but I'm not weak." Smiling, he said, "No, you're definitely not weak, Chiara." Feeling the heat rush to my face, I stammered out something like 'be safe'. Dino left the room, and it felt like the sunshine vanished with him. No, literally. He pulled together the curtains. Once he was gone, I left my room and wandered around the house. I opened one door and walked in. Inside, Dino was pulling off his shirt, revealing the many tattoos on his arms and neck. I had actually landed in Dino's bedroom. Not wanting to be seen, I quickly hid behind the door. He didn't act like he'd seen anything. Calmly, he took a shirt out of his wardrobe. It was a button up shirt which he left open while he picked out a blazer. I found myself staring at his muscular chest. Suddenly he laughed. "What are you looking at, Chiara?" The door seemed to open by itself, leaving me standing there, exposed. I tried to think of something smart to say, but what I actually said was more like: "Uuhhh…" Walking over to me, he had a relaxed smirk on his face. He put his hand on my head and ruffled my hair. "Do you make it a habit, spying on men from behind doors?" He said, leaning in and pushing me against the wall, trapping me there with his hands. I laughed nervously. "W-What? Don't be ridiculous… I was just…" I started, but the words dried up.

"Just what, exactly?" now his voice was right next to my ear. Then, all of a sudden, he seemed to be losing his balance, but just before he fell, he caught himself. That was when our lips met. I felt myself blushing furiously, and he looked as though he felt awkward as well. "Uhm… sorry, I didn't mean to do that", he said, scratching the back of his head. Still in shock, I didn't register what he'd said at all. "Chiara? Is everything alright?" he asked, pulling me out of wonderland. "Oh, yeah, I-I'm fine", I answered, feeling kind of shaken. After taking a look at the clock that hung above his desk, he exclaimed: "Oh God! I'm going to be late! See you later!" Grabbing his blazer, he left the room, but just as he left, he slipped again and crashed into the wall. _This guy is a mafia boss? How low are the mafia's standards these days? _ In a split second, Romario appeared, and Dino actually managed to leave the room. I was about to quietly walk back into my own room, but just then another one of his men, Enzo, ran into me. "Oh, sorry Chiara", he said. Then, all of a sudden, the men were quiet. Romario and Enzo both stared first at Dino's open shirt, then at me who had just left his bedroom. They shared a look and started cracking up. "I didn't know you liked to move that fast, boss."

Just then I came to realize what they must have been thinking. Oh. That sure is awkward, I thought to myself."Hey! Seriously, guys, stop! You know exactly that's not what happened!" complained Dino, "Ah… anyways, let's go to the meeting place, Levi A Than in particular doesn't appreciate people coming late to meetings."

One last time, he turned to face me. "I'll be back." I came to realize that he had become a person I kind of trusted, and we hadn't even known each other that long. Though, maybe I even kind of liked him, and maybe we could become… Realizing where my thoughts were leading me, I stopped myself from finishing that sentence. Me, liking Dino? Us, becoming what? I crossed my arms in denial. "Ciao", I said simply.

Dino had taken most of his men with him, so that there were only a few staying in the house. The maids just did the usual; cleaning and tidying up rooms. Not quite knowing what to do, I decided to tour the house; this time without opening any doors. The hallways were decorated with paintings and photographs. I discovered a room where just a single pool table stood in the middle. It was just what I needed. Maybe I could ask some members of this household to play with me; after all, I have always been good at playing pool. This could help me to get rid of my boredom. That is, right after I was done looking at the whole villa. Somehow, when I got to the end of the hallway on the second floor, I found an open door. It was opposite Dino's room, so I thought maybe it was Romario's room at first, but then I remembered that his room was actually a few doors down. It couldn't be Enzo's room, either; his room was farther towards the other end. Maybe it wasn't anyone's room? Curiously, I peeked in through the open door. The room was pitch-black, so it wasn't easy to see at first. There was definitely a bed and a dresser. A mirror hung on the wall in front of me. When I took a quick look at it, nothing seemed unusual. But wait, did I see something move? It must be my imagination, I thought, so I wasn't really bothered by it. A rustling noise startled me and I turned. There was definitely a man standing there, I could see him clearly. Somebody called me from the hallway, but yet another strange man popped out of nowhere and knocked out Dino's subordinate as soon as he reached us. I was definitely in a sticky situation. There must be more men hiding in here, I thought, pulling out my knife. I always carried it with me just in case. I couldn't possibly rely on support from Dino's men, so I would just have to take care of things myself. As fast as lightning, I tackled the man in front of me and stabbed him in the stomach. He cried out in pain, but I was already moving on to the man who had just popped out from somewhere to my right. My roundhouse kick landed straight in his face, making him stumble backwards with such force that he slammed into the mirror, which broke and fell right on top of him as he sank onto the ground. I had just punched a man and cut yet another one, when somebody grabbed my arms from behind, causing me to drop the knife. Before I could do anything, he held a handkerchief in front of my mouth. Within seconds, everything seemed to be spinning around. The man carried me away. Damn.

Splash. All of a sudden, my body turned cold. Splash.

With a start, I woke up to find myself tied to a chair, and someone was throwing water in my face. "So, you finally decided to wake up", a voice said. Slowly, I lifted up my head. The images I saw were still blurry, so I had trouble seeing the people in front of me clearly. I lowered my head again. "Hey! I order you to wake up!" another voice yelled. This person's voice was seriously annoying; he definitely sounded like a little kid. Gathering the last reserves of my strength, I sat up straight. "Hahaha! Now that I finally have a hostage, I can take my revenge on the Vongola! They shall rue the day the humiliated me!" laughed the second voice. "Yes, Master Skull!" exclaimed a myriad of other voices. I sighed. It was kind of melodramatically sounding, but it's not like they minded it. Actually, they completely ignored me. They were too busy shouting 'Hail Master Skull!' while yonder was busy working on his evil laugh. Where on earth had they taken me? When I took a better look at Skull, I didn't know what to think. I was kidnapped by a shrimp.

After what seemed like a long time, one of Skull's men actually remembered that I was there and walked up to me. "Hey, little girl! Are you a member of the Cavallone Family?" he asked loudly. Oh, great. So now they were interrogating me. "No", I answered, my voice sounding weak. I felt like I was about to fall asleep again, when a sharp pain snapped me out of it. He had actually slapped me. "Don't lie!" he yelled, "You were definitely at their villa!"

I managed a weak laugh. "I was their guest for a day, but I'm not part of their family. I barely even know those people." As I spoke, the men started looking at each other like they were looking for a scapegoat to blame for their mistake. "No matter, you will still serve as a hostage. But don't get too comfortable, we're not done with you yet", stated Skull.

He really hadn't been joking. They kept me handcuffed to a pipe and my mouth was taped shut, and I was locked in a room as cold as Hell. Every time I shut my eyes to sleep, freezing water was poured on me. Sometimes they would make loud sounds (like gunshots), making me jump, or they would turn on an unbearably bright light and point it right into my face; all for the sake of keeping me awake. I have no idea how long this went on for, time lost all meaning. Deprived of sleep, I started to see things. Images from my past came to haunt me; suddenly my mother's face was in front of me, telling me that it was my own fault things ended up this way. Then, she turned and disappeared. In her place, the man with the long scar appeared and behind him I could see the door at the end of the hall. Desperate, I just wanted this to be over; I didn't care anymore. I wanted nothing more than for Skull's men to finish me off already.

Then, one day, just when I had given up hope of ever getting out of there alive, one of the men unhand cuffed me and tied my hands together behind my back. Just in case I would try to escape, they blindfolded me and put tape over my mouth. "We're going to take you to see the boss", said one of the men. I was sure they would kill me then. Roughly, I was shoved forward. Unprepared, I stumbled and fell. They laughed, picking me up by the scruff of my neck and each one grabbed an arm as they thrust me forward.

I wasn't sure how long we walked, but all of a sudden one of the men stopped. Thinking we were there, I felt a sense of relief. It would finally end. Suddenly, an image of someone's face swam into view. It wasn't my mother's this time- it was Dino's. He had gone through so much trouble for my sake, and I let him down. With that thought to give me strength, I fought off the guards. I couldn't see them, but I had a feeling of where they stood, so I kicked the closest guard in the stomach and turned to kick the other's knee. Moaning in pain, I felt them sink down on their knees.

I had no choice but to run for it, even though I was still wearing the blindfold and my hands were tied together. Since I didn't run into anything at first, it seemed like Skull's hideout had no barriers to keep people in or out. As if nobody could escape from here. How overconfident could someone be?

I knew immediately when I reached the nearest town; I was suddenly walking on pavement. Since it was nighttime, there were barely any people outside, and if anyone saw me they just walked past me as if I wasn't tied up at all. Blindly, I made my way through random streets. After a while, my body started to feel hot. My head hurt so bad I thought it would explode. That's when paranoia started to kick in. Somehow, I felt that Skull's men followed me, so I started running, which resulted in me running into a wall, but I just changed direction and kept walking. At some point, I even tried to scream, but it came out as a rather choked sound since my mouth was taped shut. I wasn't even walking straight anymore because of my dizziness. Confusion, and finally helplessness overcame me. Overwhelmed by the whole situation and waves of many different emotions slamming into me, I finally sank down on my knees and started to cry, not even caring that I was probably in the middle of a street. This felt just like the day when those men dragged me into that room at the end of the hallway. The pain I felt that day when those bullets pierced my body, the suffering I went through… they were indescribable. The blood had just kept flowing from my wounds, but they had no time to heal before they started testing another set of bullets. No… no! Somebody, please! It doesn't matter who it is, but please save me!

"Chiara!" My head snapped up at the sound of his voice. "There you are, I was so worried!" His voice seemed to be coming from behind me. This must be my imagination, I thought, just another image I'm seeing. "W-What happened? What did they do to you?" he asked, probably not expecting an answer. My imagination sure was realistic. I could even hear footsteps, weird. Suddenly, I felt the tape getting removed from my mouth. Seconds later, my blindfold was lifted and I was looking into Dino's face.

"D-Dino?" I asked shakily, as if it was impossible for him to really be here. "I-Is that really you? Y-You're actually here?" He smiled sadly as he untied my hands. "What have they done to you to make you believe you're hallucinating?"

"Help me… they're after me… they're going to hurt me…!"

"Calm down, there is nobody here, just you and me", he explained calmly. A cry of relief escaped my lips. At that moment, I didn't care whether he saw my weak side or not. I was just so thankful- so relieved that he found me and pulled me out of that dark place. Tears running down my face, I threw my arms around him. "I-I was so terrified", I stammered. "I know, but it will be alright", he said, stroking my hair. We just sat there, hugging each other, when his men appeared, calling his name as they came closer. Abruptly, he broke free from our embrace and straightened his spine. His face had taken on a hue of red. He cleared his throat, and facing them he said: "Uhm… well, I found her."

His men had smirks on their faces. They must have seen us hugging. Embarrassed, I looked away. "We leave the boss out of sight for one minute, and he makes a move on the first girl he sees", laughed the man named Romario. "R-Romario!" yelled Dino in response.

I laughed and then winced and fell. Dino ran and caught me. Lifting me into his arms he walked over to the car that he and his men must have been driving. Sighing I rested my head against his chest. All I really wanted to do now was sleep. "I'm so tired…" I mumbled. He must have heard that, because he murmured into my ear, "Sleep, Chiara. They won't hurt you anymore."

"Did you say something, boss?" asked his men. "N-No, nothing!" he lied. Smiling, I thought about guys and their stupid guy pride. He wouldn't even admit it in front of his men. I can't recall anything after that; I just remember waking up in the room I stayed in.

That morning, one of his men was waiting to tell me that Dino would be gone all day, hunting down the people who'd hurt me. Apparently the Carcassa Family (that's what they're called) had wanted a ransom. Left with the men, we decided to play pool. At last, something I was good at. We played for a long time, and I won most of the time. The only time I lost was to Enzo, but he was telling me an embarrassing Dino baby story so I was distracted. When we got bored of pool, Enzo offered to take me to the shooting range. "It's been a while since I've practiced." I said pulling out my AK-47. Pointing at the target, I fired. The bullets all hit the bulls-eye, except for one. "Damn. I really am out of practice." I muttered. "There there, it's alright." Sighing, I loaded the gun with another round, and fired again. This time I hit the bulls-eye every time. "Nice", I heard someone say. Cocking the gun I turned to see Dino leaning on a target. "You want to get shot?" Smiling he walked up me. "Not today, I'm afraid." Pouting I turned to Romario. "Awww, don't be like that! I was only kidding!" Grinning smugly, I turned back to Dino. He was grinning and also had a gun. "Shoot off?" I asked. He nodded. "Romario, will you judge?" Once he agreed to it, and we'd agreed to the order we would be shooting in, we started. I shot first, one round, and all my bullets hit the bulls-eye. Dino shot next, and all his bullets hit the bulls-eye except for the last one. But that one was kind of unfair because his men had left for a second to check on something (clearly he was way clumsier when they weren't around). He had actually shot the tree to his right. Shocked, he looked at his gun and asked his men to repair it. Apparently he didn't know anything about how it happened. His men just sighed and took the gun from him (I really don't think they repaired it since nothing was wrong with it). I walked over to him and playfully punched his shoulder. "It's okay, bro. You never had a chance of winning from the start." He just stood there, confused. "Uhh…huh…"

Romario laughed. "Boss… you just looked really uncool." That got Dino's attention. "Romario! Don't say that!" Laughing I walked back towards the house. "When you boys are done fighting, dinner will be ready", said a maid who had randomly appeared. They all walked into the house, and we sat down to dinner. But that night we had an unexpected guest; a boy who introduced himself as Basil. I thought that was a spice… why did I have to keep meeting people with weird names?! As we ate, he asked me who I was. "I'm Chiara Lupo, nice to meet you", I said, and I had suppress the sudden urge to ask him whether or not he was a _spice_ girl. We then went on to talking about the usual conversational topics, like the weather. At one point, Dino's men had left for some reason, causing him to turn clumsy again and spill soup on me. "Ah- I'm so sorry!" he apologized multiple times. Smiling, I left the table. "It's ok, I'll just go change." With that I left the room. As soon as I walked out the door, I heard Basil's hushed voice say: "Dino, who is she? I'm serious; you know you shouldn't just take in strangers and tell them about us." Abruptly, I stopped in my tracks. Then Dino's voice, equally as quiet: "She grew up in a now extinct mafia family, the Estraneo Famiglia."

"Weren't they the ones who created the possession bullet?" He asked, his voice still a whisper. Hearing those words I shuddered as the memories came rushing over me. Sinking to my knees, I sat there for a long time, trembling and breathing hard.

I was back in the laboratory, struggling against the men that dragged me towards the room at the end of the hallway and screaming for help. I remembered the awful things I'd been through. But this time I would face my past instead of running away from it. Once again, I suffered through everything.

Then, one day, no one had come to the room. With much effort, I managed to break free from the ropes and open the door. When I reached the main laboratory, I smelled it. It was that disgusting smell of rotting meat. All the adults were just lying around, papers were scattered on the floor. Somebody had killed them all. That had been my chance to escape, to be free, but the memories of my lost childhood would come back to haunt me in my dreams at night.

Slowly, I regained my senses. Still trembling, I climbed to my feet. I felt like a huge burden had been lifted off of my shoulders. Just then I heard Dino's voice. "She's been gone for a long time."

"She'll probably be there soon; just be patient." That reminded me. I was supposed to be changing my clothes. Hurrying to my room, I pulled on a suit before racing back down to the dining room. "Sorry that took so long." I apologized before sitting down again. Dino looked at me. "Wow, fantastic baby." (AN: Sorry, that's a reference to a Vongola Crack video, it's really a Big Bang song xD) Wait, did he just say that? No, must have been my imagination; nobody acted as if he'd just said anything strange. "Oh, you're back", said Basil as if he'd just noticed me. "So did you guys have an interesting conversation while I was gone?" I asked while I sat back down. For a second, they just looked at each other, then Dino said: "No, you didn't really miss anything."

"Actually, Dino really missed you", teased Basil, which made Dino blush and insist that it wasn't true. Laughing, I leaned closer to Dino. "Really? You can't be without me for ten minutes?" That made him blush even redder and he told me not to believe everything Basil says. Then, I stopped laughing. Leaning in even closer, I said: "Are you sure? Because I'm pretty I heard you say something about me when I left the room."

I watched as his expression changed from surprised to a nervous smile. "Ah, you heard that…?"

As I turned my gaze to Basil he laughed nervously. "Well, as a member of CEDEF, I have a right to know what happens to our allied families." Sighing, I went back to eating my meal. "So, anyone see the news last night? There's a huge serial killer in America. They say he's a middle-aged, silver haired man." (AN: Case Closed reference :D) said Basil, attempting to change topics. I looked up from my plate. "A killer? I hope they find him soon." All I could think about was the unknown person or persons who had killed the people who'd held me captive. Nodding in agreement, Dino said: "Yeah, me too." The conversation fell flat then as dessert arrived.

Soon we were saying good bye to Basil. As soon as Dino shut the door, his aura changed. "Come with me. I want to talk to you." Curious, I followed him to his room. Sitting on his bed, he indicated for me to take the chair across from him. "Now then. Are you aware of how the Estraneo famiglia ended up?" he asked, looking concerned. I nervously bit my lip and shuddered. At that moment I could almost swear I smelled the dead bodies. When I didn't answer, he looked at me. "I can tell from your face that you do. Very well. I won't ask what they did to you; I'll let you tell me whenever you feel comfortable. I just wanted to know if you knew what happened. You can go."

Standing up, I was about to leave when a thought struck me. Turning back to him, I asked: "Dino… did anyone ever find out who killed them?" Surprised, he looked up. "Yes. Didn't you know?" Shaking my head I explained: "I was chained up in a closed off room for a long time. By the time I got out, they were all dead and their killer had vanished." I couldn't read his expression at all; he just gave me this weird look. "N-Not that I care! I mean they were horrible people, but still… I was just curious."

Sighing, he leaned back. "It was another child they experimented on; apparently they underestimated his strength."

I couldn't believe what he'd just told me. A child? How in the world had that child managed to kill off all those adults? "Do you know the child's name?" I asked, still is shock.

The look in his eyes was completely serious. "I'm sure you have heard of Vongola Decimo's mist guardian before", he just said, but he didn't give me the name.

"C-Chrome Dokuro?!" I exclaimed in awe. I had heard very little about her, but as far as I had known, she was pretty weak. A little girl had actually been able to kill all of those strong people… I was definitely impressed.

My excitement soon died down when he shook his head. "No, not her. I mean the other one: Rokudo Mukuro."

I let out a shocked gasp as I realized who he was talking about. "Him?" I asked in a somewhat hushed voice. When he just nodded, I didn't say anything. There was nothing I could possibly say. Was he being serious? Rokudo Mukuro was the one who killed her entire family? When Dino told me it was a child, I thought of the stronger ones I'd known. But _that_ boy was the one?

"Did you know him?" The question caught me off guard.

"Well… yes, k-kind of… he was a-always quiet- I-I would have never guessed that it was him." I managed to stutter. Dino looked at me. "Why, when you knew him, he didn't strike you as the type of person who would kill?"

"Not really," I replied, my voice quiet. It didn't seem right to be talking about this. Not now with the memories fresh in my mind. "I need to get some air." I said standing up and quickly leaving the room. "Chiara, wait!" he exclaimed, getting up from the bed. But I couldn't look him in the eye anymore. Passing Romario on the way, I said a quick hello, but ran past. Soon, I found myself on the shooting range, my gun in hand. Hearing the sound of someone running, I turned around. Dino and Romario, both out of breath, stood in front of me. "Chiara, please. Think about what you're doing!" Dino cried, taking the gun from me. "What are you talking about? I just wanted to practice…" Stunned, they just stood there, staring at me. "What, did you really think I'd kill myself? Am I that weak in your eyes?" Blushing, Dino handed me my gun back. "Sorry. It's just you left so quickly, I got worried. You really seemed desperate." Sighing I put the gun back in my holster. "You watch too much Desperate Hose wives." (AN: We don't use the real title, so it's not a typo ;D)

"Actually, I don't watch that show." said Dino with a confused look on his face.

"Guilty as charged." Romario admitted, putting his hands up in surrender. Both Dino and I looked at him in confusion, then we just pretended we never heard him.

"Look, please come back inside. We don't have to talk about it if you don't want to." Nodding I allowed them to escort me back to the house, where Dino got me some coffee and cake and we talked about normal things. But still when I was alone that night getting ready for bed, the conversation with Dino kept replaying in my head. For the first time, I dreamed of Mukuro. He was sitting in a dark corner. His expression gave nothing away. I think I've never even heard his voice. But still right before I woke up, he raised his head and looked at me with a smile on his face.

Sitting up, I turned on the light to reassure myself there was nothing there. For a while, I just sat in bed, shivering with fear. Good thing Dino was in his own room.

That morning, there must have been something off with me, because when I came downstairs Dino asked if I was ok. I told him I was and inquired why he was asking. "No reason. You just look tired." Shaking my head, I grabbed a cup of coffee. "I slept fine." Nodding, he went back to eating. One of the maids placed a plate of food in front of me. As I started eating, Dino eyed me from across the table. "We need to get you some clothes. I mean not that you don't look good in my stuff, but I think you need some more feminine clothes. So what do you think about going shopping today? With me and my subordinates, I mean." Shrugging, I chewed on my bacon. "Sure why not. I need to get out of the house. But I don't have any money."

"It's no big deal. I'll pay for everything." Dino said, standing up. "I'll get the car out of the garage, can you tell Romario?"

Nodding, I stood up and went to track down Dino's right hand man. When everyone was assembled, we began the long journey. No, just kidding; we only went to the mall down the street. Soon I felt like a true women as Dino and Romario were both carrying about 5 bags of clothes each. In other words, this shopping trip was a big success.

Once we'd gotten home, I'd been putting my clothes away when I heard someone clear their throat. "What's up?" I asked, turning to see Dino walk in. "I'm just checking in. How are you doing?"

"Fine, I just put the last of the clothes away."

Dino nodded. "Chiara, can I ask you a question?"

"You just did. But, yes you can ask me another." I teased, sitting on the bed. "W-Will you go out with me?" Dino stuttered shyly. God he's so cute when he's stuttering… wait, did he just ask me out? Shocked, I looked at him. He looked away. Alright… that was kind of sudden, but he was hot. And it's not like we just met or anything, we'd known each other for longer than a week. "Sure, why not." I finally answered. Baffled, he turned to face me. "Really?" Running over, he hugged me. "Dino, I need air. Just saying." Blushing, he loosened his grip. "Sorry."

A few months later, I was sitting outside under a tree reading a book. Hearing footsteps I looked up. Dino was standing over me. "Mind if I sit down?" he asked adorably. "Sure go ahead." But I was shocked when instead of sitting, he offered me his hand, like he did the night we met. Taking it, I followed him to a secluded area a few feet from where I was sitting. We had been going out for a pretty long time and things were going great.

I was surprised to see that he seemed somewhat nervous. "Where are we going, Dino?" I asked curiously. When we finally stopped walking, he turned to look at me. "Just somewhere out of earshot", he said, looking around as if waiting for one of his men to appear out of nowhere. Confused, I shook my head. Then I just said "Okay" and laughed.

We just stood there for a while, still holding hands. Then, suddenly, he pulled something out of his coat. Much to my surprise, it was a chart for ring sizes. Punching his shoulder playfully, I told him my ring size, but he'd ruined the surprise anyways. "Are you sure about that?" he asked, grinning.

Again, he reached into his jacket. This time, he took out a small box. At first I didn't realize what it was, but when he kneeled down in front of me I let out a surprised gasp. "Chiara, I know that we've only been together for five months, but I just know that you're the one person I want to spend the rest of my life with. Will you marry me?"

I couldn't speak; I was too busy trying not to break out in tears. The past few months had been the best in my whole life. Dino is just such a great guy; even though he's extremely clumsy when his subordinates aren't around, but had stopped bothering me after a while. In fact, I find his clumsiness weirdly cute. I knew my answer even before I said it out loud. "Yes."

FIN


End file.
